The SONUS series is equipped with a rich library of voices: you can easily select hundreds of additional sounds from the internal memories using register tabs located on the front panel. Each feature can be easily set using the smartly-designed control panel and backlit display.
PHYSIS TECHNOLOGY
Physis® is a proprietary technology, developed and patented by Viscount.
Physis® is used in the UNICO, SONUS and OUVERTURE series. This proprietary technology perfectly reproduces the sounds, ambience and configuration of the most important organs in the world.
Thanks to revolutionary Physis® technology – the result of ten years research and development - Viscount has created a dream instrument that provides a thrilling experience for today’s organists.
Physis® physical modeling is proprietary technology, developed and patented by Viscount and used in the UNICO, SONUS and Ouverture series. Physis® reproduces with amazing accuracy the sounds, environment and sonic configuration of the worlds’ most prestigious organs.
Physis® technology uses an advanced multi-processor platform called SHARC ®. The system is so powerful, it’s capable of providing computing power in excess of 12 billion calculations per second! This impressive "computational power" is necessary to calculate real-time physical-model algorithms which generate an organ sound with the highest authenticity.
The Linux operating system has been chosen to support this new platform as it’s well known for its stability and flexibility. Thanks to this system, all " Physis"-powered devices are able to integrate easily with the latest technologies.
Physis® technology models the sound "physically" by measuring the natural characteristics and physical properties of each organ pipe, as well as the interaction with the environment and the pipes. Thanks to the powerful processors, the sound is created not through the common “sample” (digital recording), but reconstructing the sound IN REAL TIME, through sophisticated algorithms. This process reproduces all the natural aspects of the sound right down to the smallest imperfections and irregularities. This is vitally important to give the sound its character, expression and warmth.
The sound waves are played back as they exit the organ pipe, each with its own characteristics of autonomy, uniqueness and authenticity. The progression of timbre across the keyboard is accurate, smooth and incredibly natural thanks to the absence of the "split points" typical of technologies based on sampling.
With Physis®, the parameters used to generate the sound are available so you can easily modify and mold the actual sound structure. The final sound being produced is a three-dimensional image and not only expressed horizontally, as in traditional technologies, but also vertically and diagonally, just like traditional pipe organs.
We have devoted special attention to the sound reproduction system, in order to faithfully reproduce the impressive dynamics, the broad spectrum of sound and all the surprising spaciousness of the sound of the pipe organ. The effect is stunning: sitting at the console of a Physis®-powered organ you will feel inspired as if you were sitting at the console of a beautiful pipe organ.
THE RAR (REAL AUDIO RENDERING) TECHNOLOGY
Beginning with Physis® sound generation technology, we have designed a revolutionary new sound system called RAR (Real Audio Rendering). The heart of the system is a powerful real time sound processing algorithm that, in conjunction with four new additional audio channels located at specific points on the console, is able to recreate with great accuracy the acoustic field produced by a real pipe organ in a large reverberant space. Thanks to RAR technology, you can totally manage the impression of three-dimensional space in which the instrument sits all the way up to a large cathedral setting. All this is possible without connecting any additional speakers. Thanks to the versatility of Physis® technology and a long study of the optimization of spaces and components, it was possible to integrate the entire system inside a compact console.
We have paid special attention to the amplification system, in order to faithfully reproduce the impressive dynamics, the wide sound spectrum, and all the amazing spaciousness of the pipe organ sound. In addition to traditional amplification, we placed two pairs of full-range speakers at strategic points on the console: one pair on the outside panels and one pair on the top stop jamb panel. In this way, as the sound comes from different positions, it is possible to simulate the multiple reflections of the walls, ceiling and floor of a large reverberant space. The effect is quite startling. You will experience a difference just as significant as that achieved when you add a surround sound system to your home television. .
